This beautiful hike through the Hautes Fagnes/Hohes Venn nature reserve takes you from the Vennbahn station of Reichenstein to the highest point of Belgium (Botrange) and back. The hike is on trails, forest roads, and boardwalks. You will find something to eat at Botrange and the Maison du Parc Botrange (Centre Nature). The hike starts at the parking of the Vennbahn station of Reichenstein, near the Reichenstein Abbey. You cross the cycling path and walk up into the woods past the border stones. About 600 m further you come to a rocky outcrop called Richelsley, with a large cross on top (Kreuz im Venn). A small cave with a Mary statue (Mariengrotte) can be found at the foot. From Richelsley you continue on quiet forest roads (largely paved) around the Pannensterzkopf hill. You descend towards the valley of the Hill/Helle river. Just before you descend you have a great view across the valley towards the Grande Fagne. Below, near the river, you find the Pouhon de Herzogenhügel, a source of ferruginous water. You cross the river and follow a small trail through the moors in the beautiful Helle valley, partly on boardwalks. At the Petit Bongard bush you turn right and follow a trail through the wood until you get to the edge of the Grande Fagne. A single path takes you straight through the moors. In the first section you pass a small lake, typical of the area. It’s called a pingo or palsa, a small lake created by the melting of a lens of ice. A bit further you pass the Geitzbusch, a forest with a lot of dead trees in the middle of the moors. You pass this forest and head for the next collection of dead trees, the Noir Flohay. From here the path turns left towards the boardwalk from Baraque Michel along the Helle. You follow the boardwalk upstream until you get to the Belgian-Prussian border stone. Here you turn left on another boardwalk along the Fagne Wallonne straight towards Botrange. Near Botrange there is a viewpoint across the moors. At Botrange, there is a restaurant, and a small hill with stone steps bridging the gap between 693 m altitude and 700 m (the Baltia tower). Parallel to the main road you walk to the nature center, where there is a small restaurant (‘Fagnetaria’) as well. You cross the road and walk northeast along the Fagne Wallonne and the woods. You turn right on a forest road until you get to the Sentier de la Roer, a small track through the woods taking you along one Roer branch to the other. You then cross the young river and walk on the other side of the Roer until you get to a forest road bridge across the river. A path takes you along the Bosfagne moor before you cross woods to the Nesselo moor and the Scheidbach. Just past this moor I went left through the Rurbusch, but found at the end that the track was off-limits to hikers. I replaced the track for this part with an alternative track, right and then left twice getting you to the same point (the waypoint marked Rurbusch). You follow the forest road, turn right until at the end you walk through grass on a minor path and another minor path through the woods until you get to the forest road. You follow the road until the turn-off taking you to the Schwarzsee, a small reservoir in the Schwarzbach valley. You then follow the valley on a forest road and then a track until you get to the German border. You cross the stream and the border and then walk up into the Ruitzhof enclave. This piece of land is completely surrounded by Belgian borders (part of it the Vennbahn), and consists of pasture with good views of the Eifel. You leave the enclave on the other side and walk back to the starting point.

Informazio

Along the Fagne Wallonne

A broad forest track takes you along the Fagne Wallonne and spruce forest. The Roer river has two sources in the Fagne Wallonne to your left.

656 m

Informazio

Baltia Tower

Artificial hill named after a Belgian military officer. The steps take you up to 700 meters altitude.

692 m

Informazio

Boardwalk and path along Fagne Wallonne

A boardwalk and then an unpaved road takes you along the Fagne Wallonne towards the Botrange.

632 m

Informazio

Boardwalk Helle valley

Beautiful board walk along the Helle (or Hill) river.

616 m

Informazio

Border

Border between the German enclave Ruitzhof and Belgium

540 m

Informazio

Border stone

Border stone in the woods

0 m

Informazio

Descent Hill valley

Here you descend towards the Hill/Helle valley with view to the Grande Fagne

554 m

Informazio

Forest Road

Paved forest road between Sourbrodt and Kalterherberg

591 m

Informazio

Geitzbusch

Forest with quite a few dead trees in the middle of the Grande Fagne

593 m

Zubi

Hill crossing

Crossing of the Hill river

525 m

Informazio

Hill valley

Trail through the Hill valley

528 m

Informazio

Kreuz im Venn / Richelsley

Big cross on top of the Richelsley rocks

571 m

Informazio

Lookout point Botrange

Viewing platform on the edge of the Fagne Wallonne

690 m

Informazio

Mariengrotte

Small 'cave' in the rocks with Mary statue

570 m

Informazio

Minor path

Minor path through grass and then woods.

620 m

Informazio

Noir Flohay

Collection of dead trees in the middle of the moors. Peculiar sight

634 m

Informazio

Path through Fagne des Deux Séries

Straight trail through the Fagne des Deux Séries, part of the Grande Fagne

574 m

Informazio

Petit Bongard

Bush at the edge of the moors

548 m

Aintzira

Pingo or Palsa

Little lake called a pingo or a palsa (I am not sure). Formed by a lens of ice pushing away the ground and then creating a lake after melting

582 m

Informazio

Pouhon de Herzogenhügel

Source with water containing iron.

531 m

Informazio

Prussian border stone

A border stone between Belgium and Prussia. The border ran from here along the Hill from Eupen to Baraque Michel.

632 m

Informazio

Reichenstein Station

Former station on the Vennbahn, now an access point to the new cycling path.

0 m

Informazio

River crossing

Here you walk through the Roer river (not too deep), and continue along the river to the bridge.

571 m

Informazio

Ruitzhof

German enclave with farms, fields and beech trees. Good views of Kalterherberg and the Eifel.

537 m

Informazio

Rurbusch

Forest near the Roer river.

619 m

Informazio

Schwarzbach valley road

Forest road through the Schwarzbach valley

561 m

Informazio

Schwarzsee dam

Dam creating the Schwarzsee

552 m

panoramica

Schwarzsee viewpoint

Viewpoint across the Schwarzsee.

557 m

Informazio

Sentier de la Roer

Here you enter a trail along the Roer river which is closed between 2 hours before sunset to 2 hours after sunrise to protect red deer.

598 m

Informazio

Signal de Botrange

Highest point of Belgium with a restaurant, large parking, telecommunication tower and the small Baltia tower which brings you up to 700 m